Top 10 Ways Le Corbusier Ruined Architecture

Hot take.

adevarias
9 min readJan 30, 2023

Le Corbusier is the most repeated name in the Architectural world. I haven’t taken a single architecture studio or lecture class that didn’t mention something about him, and with justifiable reasons — his contributions ripple and affect our built environment to this day.

Some say it may not be accurate to say that Le Corbusier “ruined” architecture, as his contributions and impact on architecture and design have been widely debated and are subjective to personal opinions based on how much influence he has in our world.

It is that very influence that inspired this list that I have been holding back for 10 years, all the way back when I started my architectural journey.

A young Le Corbusier

1 —Be Wealthy. Be Man. Be White.

Corbusier never had formal architectural education. He learned everything by going to the library, working with renowned local architects for a few years, and making most of his early mistakes with his parent’s wealthy friend’s houses. After he got sued, he took a break, traveled the world with friends, and was able to just paint and explore himself as an artist for two years. He wrote books and hung around the right people that were already part of his social circle, with his family and family friends investing in his ideas and…

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adevarias
adevarias

Written by adevarias

Architectural designer monthly crafting well-researched articles envisioning the future (and sometimes the past) of the built environment.